Bond was set at $15,000 Friday for 19-year-old Monroe County man arrested after admitting to police he tied an electrical cord around a dog's neck and left it in the woods to die.

ďHe said when the dog got hurt, he didnít know what to do," Sheriff
John Cary Bittick told the AJC. "He tied the dog up in the woods, hoping
it would die."

An animal rescue group, Save-A-Pet, found the mixed-breed dog nearly
decapitated in the woods and took it to the Caldwell Veterinary Hospital
in Forsyth, Bittick said. The veterinarian's office reported the
incident to the sheriff's office, which launched an investigation.

WARNING: GRAPHIC PHOTO BELOW

The dog required surgery to repair†a severed trachea and other injuries, but is expected to survive, Bittick said.

Investigators arrested Monterion Dionte Davis, of Forsyth, on a
charge of aggravated animal cruelty and he was booked into the Monroe
County jail, Bittick said. Bond was set at $15,000 for Davis at a court
appearance Friday. If convicted, Davis could be sentenced to up to 10
years in prison.

ďIt is without a doubt the worst case of animal cruelty Iíve ever seen, and Iíve been sheriff 29 years," Bittick told the AJC.

A picture of the animal, too graphic to be published, depicted the animal's neck severely injured.